At INSURV site, life ring is front and center

A suicide prevention link gets prominent play on the official INSURV website. Coincidence?

In case the 14-hour days of checks, inventories, walk-throughs and re-checks leading up to a Board of Inspection and Survey visit lead you to think dark thoughts, there’s help: a link to a suicide prevention hotline is front and center on the INSURV website.

“Life is worth living,” it says. Clicking on the life ring redirects you to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline website.

These suicide prevention links are common on Navy sites, appearing on most – if not all – official websites. But normally, this button is tucked in alongside other links to Navy.mil, Navy Freedom of Information Act, and Navy and Marine Corps recruiting. On INSURV’s page, the suicide link stands alone, right below the board’s contact info – as one eagle-eyed Navy Times reader pointed out.

It’s as if the sudden realization that INSURV is bearing down on you might lead to some unsavory thoughts.